UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Arthur W. Page Center at Penn State announced the recipients of its 2026 Page/Johnson Legacy Scholar grants, selecting 11 projects that will assess how corporate social responsibility, advocacy and activism are evolving in a polarized political and cultural environment.
The accepted projects feature 26 scholars from 15 universities. The call for proposals received 67 submissions from scholars around the world, focused on strategies and insights related to environmental justice; diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI); and corporate advocacy and activism.
Funding innovative and timely research through its Page/Johnson Legacy Scholar Grant program is a core initiative of the Page Center. Each year, the center appoints senior research fellows to identify emerging issues and solicit research proposals that advance scholarly, industry and public understanding of those topics.
The current research cohort is led by senior research fellows Heidi Hatfield Edwards, professor at Florida Institute of Technology, and Nicholas Browning, associate professor at Indiana University.
“The scope and urgency of what corporate responsibility and advocacy mean today made this an especially strong call,” said Holly Overton, Page Center research director and associate professor of advertising/public relations at Penn State. “These projects reflect the kind of research needed to better understand how organizations are navigating ethical communication in challenging and unpredictable situations.”
Funded scholars will complete their projects over the next year. This summer, the Page Center blog will feature weekly posts that will overview the research topic, introduce the 2026 scholars and share their ideas as they begin their research. Projects will also be presented at the Page Center’s Research Roundtables, which are virtual gatherings with scholars, research fellows and members of the Page Center advisory board.
“One of the most rewarding parts of our Legacy Scholar program is watching projects that specifically address relevant issues take shape,” said Denise Bortree, Page Center director and interim dean of the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications. “By supporting our scholars, we help build research that not only advances theory but also informs ethical practice in public communication today."
The 2026 Page/Johnson Legacy Scholar Grants
- "An empirical investigation of value‑driven messaging and language‑use strategies in organizational DEI stances" — Alan Abitbol, University of Tampa, and Kelly Vibber, University of Dayton
- "Barriers to discussing neighborhood environmental justice differences" — Mary Beth Deline, Illinois State University
- "Corporate political responsibility, political hostility, and the integrity threshold behind selective engagement and greenhushing" — John Balabanis and Georgiana Grigore, University of Leicester
- "Costly signaling and CSR legitimacy in a polarized environment: the role of technology‑based verification in CSR campaigns" — Yoon‑Joo Lee, Washington State University, and Huan Chen, University of Florida
- "DEI backlash, organizational cues, and legitimacy in a polarized society: a conflict engagement perspective contextualized in the United States" — Yang Cheng, North Carolina State University, and Yi Ding, Beijing Normal University–Hong Kong Baptist University
- "Enhancing support and reducing backlash for corporate social advocacy through moral foundation framing" — Xi Liu, Syracuse University; Jiacheng Huang, University of Minnesota; Moon Lee, Syracuse University; and Alvin Zhou, University of Minnesota
- "Framing responsibility: how inclusive vs. exclusive corporate social advocacy shapes public legitimacy and polarization perceptions — Keonyoung Park, Hong Kong Baptist University; Jeongwon Yang, University of Miami; and Mariyam Mohamed Manic, Hong Kong Baptist University
- Inside the black box: understanding top PR managers’ DEI rollback decisions through the circuit of culture" — Weiting Tao, Dongya Wang, Hui Shi, University of Miami; Cen “April” Yue, Boston University; and Jeongwon Yang, University of Miami
- "Polarized worlds, divergent duties: how sociopolitical polarization across Europe, the U.S., and Asia is reshaping corporate social responsibility communication" — insights from practitioner interviews — Elina R. Tachkova, Hong Kong Baptist University
- "The accountability gap: moral typecasting and stakeholder evaluations of corporate course corrections in politicized contexts" — Shupei Yuan, Northern Illinois University, and Haoran Chu, University of Florida
- "Unifying amid division: How organizations can design politically unifying advocacy campaigns in times of polarization" — Carlina DiRusso, Brandon Boatwright, and Virginia Harrison, Clemson University
The Page Center is located in the Bellisario College. Since its founding in 2004, the center has funded more than 350 scholars and awarded over $1 million in funding. While research themes vary from year to year, the center consistently supports academic exploration into the understanding of principles practiced in public communication. Learn more about the center and its research and education initiatives at the Page Center website.